Beef Enchiladas with an extra tasty, saucy filling, smothered with a homemade Enchilada Sauce. My time saving trick is to use one base Enchilada spice mix for both the sauce and filling!
This is a reader-favourite recipe included by popular demand in my debut cookbook “Dinner”!
Beef Enchiladas
I love that there are so many variations of Beef Enchiladas in this big-wide-world.
Simple ones, filled with a plain cooked beef filling then topped with enchilada sauce and (lots of) cheese. Fancy ones with the addition of chillies, beans, corn and even olives, sometimes even bacon. Hidden vegetable versions (don’t ever try that on me, I can pick them a mile away).
Shredded beef enchiladas, short rib ones.
And today I’m sharing mine. 🙂 It’s made with:
A simple homemade Enchilada sauce which is quick to make and so, SO much better than store bought;
A flavour loaded beef and bean filling which is made with ground beef (mince), a load of Tex-Mex spices, refried beans AND black beans. Bean overload? Definitely not! The refried beans add bulk while keeping the filling nice and juicy so we can have nice, big, plump enchiladas!
What you need for Beef Enchiladas
Here’s what goes in my beef enchiladas.
Just a note on a few of the ingredients:
Refried beans – the “secret ingredient” that really fills out the beef mixture so you can big, plump, generously stuffed enchiladas that are nice and juicy. I use this in my Chicken Enchiladas too – works a treat!
Black beans – to fill it out a bit and add a different texture to the filling. Diced vegetables are great to add too – especially red peppers / capsicum.
Homemade Enchilada Sauce – made with either tomato passata or canned tomato sauce (US, I like Hunts), plus a good hit of Tex-Mex spices.
Beef – This is a recipe for beef enchiladas so it’s made with ground beef. But it can be substituted with pork, chicken or turkey!
Here’s my little time saving trick: one spice mix to flavour both the beef filling AND the Enchilada Sauce.
How to make Beef Enchiladas
There’s a good back of Tex-Mex spices in this! Some of it is used for the homemade Enchilada Sauce, and the rest is used to flavour the Beef and Bean Filling.
Try these on the side
Grilled Corn or try this Mexican Corn
Ahhh. These Beef Enchiladas. I really hate using the words “these are the BEST!” for any of my recipes because we all have different palettes, and what I may think is the “best” might not be to someone elses’ taste.
But truly, to me, to this day, even after having consumed more than my fair share of Enchiladas at Tex-Mex restaurants across America, I still think these are better. Way, WAY better than the mainstream chain restaurants!
Hope you had a great weekend! – Nagi x
Watch how to make it
This recipe features in my debut cookbook Dinner. The book is mostly new recipes, but this is a reader favourite included by popular demand!
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Beef Enchiladas
Ingredients
Spice Mix
- 1 tsp each onion & garlic powder (Note 1)
- 1 tbsp each cumin powder, paprika and dried oregano
- 1/2 – 1 tsp cayenne pepper (optional, spiciness)
Enchilada Sauce
- 2 tbsp olive oil
- 3 tbsp flour , plain/all purpose
- 2 cups (500ml) chicken stock / broth , low sodium
- 1 1/2 cups (375 ml) tomato passata OR US 1 can (8 oz) canned tomato sauce (eg Hunts) (Note 2)
- 1/4 tsp each salt and pepper
Beef
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- 2 garlic cloves , minced
- 1 onion , finely chopped (~1 cup)
- 1 lb / 500g ground beef (mince)
- 400g / 14oz refried beans (1 can, I use Old El Paso)
- 400g / 14oz black beans, drained (1 can, Note 3)
Enchiladas
- 8 tortillas (or burrito wraps)
- 1.5 cups (150g) grated melting cheese, or more (I like Monterey Jack, tasty or cheddar cheese)
- Cilantro/coriander leaves , roughly chopped (optional garnish)
Instructions
- Mix together Spice Mix ingredients. Set aside.
Enchilada Sauce
- Heat oil in a large saucepan over medium heat. Add flour and mix to combine into a paste. Cook for 1 minute, stirring constantly.
- Add 1/2 cup chicken broth, whisk straight away then it will turn into a thick smooth paste quite quickly.
- Add remaining chicken broth, passata, salt, pepper and 2 tablespoons of SPICE MIX. Whisk
- Increase heat slightly to medium high. Cook for 3 to 5 minutes, whisking regularly, until the sauce thickens to the consistency of thick syrup (see video). Remove from stove.
Filling
- Preheat oven to 180C/350F.
- Heat oil in a skillet over high heat. Add garlic and onion, cook for 2 minutes.
- Add beef and cook for 2 minutes, breaking it up as you go. Add remaining Spice Mix. Cook for a further 2 minutes or until completely brown.
- Add refried beans, black beans, about 1/4 cup of Enchilada Sauce + salt & pepper. Mix (Note 4) and cook for 2 minutes then remove from stove (see video).
Enchiladas
- Smear a bit of Sauce on the bottom of a baking dish (stops sliding).
- Place filling on the lower third of a tortilla. Roll up then place in the baking dish, seam side down. Repeat with remaining Filling & Tortillas.
- Pour Sauce over the Enchiladas, top with cheese, bake for 10 minutes covered (Note 5) then 10 minutes uncovered. Serve hot!
Recipe Notes:
Nutrition Information:
Originally published June 2016. Updated August 2019 with new photos, new video, new process photos and refreshed writing – no change to recipe, I wouldn’t dare!
Mexican Mania
Life of Dozer
Rain, hail or shine, Dozer blasts through the dog door out into the backyard to chase rabbits and bark at birds.
Luckily, he has a raincoat to help keep him dry(ish) on wet days!
Delicious ! So easy and I loved it being more than just beef and bread. Husband approved.
Winner, winner, winner! Works a treat with Quorn mince and subbed black beans for some chopped peppers and mushrooms, shows you can really change this up how you like. Absolutely delish, thank you as ever!
This was amazing! Guests and hubby loved it!
Hi Nagi, could I freeze half the enchilada sauce and half of the beef mixture ? as only making it for two of us. Thank you 😊
Hi Michelle, you can assemble in full and freeze to then you just need to bake to serve! N x
Well, this is the BEST Enchilads ever. Yes I have made these b4 but these are the best.
Thanks again for yummy recipes !
that was the bomb! Made it with the corn and avocado salad. there was a round of applause in the house. i doubled the recipe, and realised it is way too much for us. have assembled it in two trays, can i freeze the second tray?
I’m so glad they were a hit Gilnar – you can definitely freeze the second tray! N x
Good thing as I froze it lastnight. Thank you!
Have started making my weekly meal plans based on all your recipes. The coconut lentil curry another hit and cause for celebration in our household. Making your jambalaya tonight… can’t wait. Thank you for your generosity in sharing your recipes.
Omg: made it today and we loved it! Thank you very much – this will be my new favorite to make!! I didn’t know how easy it is to make enchilada sauce!! I made them with regular whole wheat wraps, i didnt have garlic and onion powder so omitted it, i didnt have cayenne pepper so replaced it with chili powder ( and added extra for more kick ) and added a pinch of sugar to the enchilada sauce as it was a bit sour – sooo yummy
This is a winner in our house EVERY time. Simple to cook and tastes amazing!
Hi again Nagi,
I’m taking this to a Memorial Dinner. Once completely baked, can I depend on it being great after freezing it? Need to cook dishes ahead of the Memoeial day. Thank you.
If you read her chicken enchilada recipe which is almost the same, I think she has instructions for freezing. I believe she suggests freezing the burrito part and sauce separately and then defrosting, top with sauce cheese & bake.
Another winner from Nagi! I added a small green pepper and jalapeño from my garden to the onions & garlic step. Delicious! Making your own sauce is so easy and really enhances the overall flavor of this dish!
Since I am cooking for two, I made 6 enchiladas (which will easily make 2-3 meals) and froze the remaining meat/bean mixture for some killer nachos in the next couple weeks!
Will cook today thanks Nagi wonder full recipes
Made this for dinner tonight, was so good and tasty. Even better than the beef enchiladas at local Mexican restaurant. Thanks Nagi!
We love your blog Nagi! We made this for the first time last night using turkey mince and without the refried beans as we didn’t have any. We also added sliced mushrooms and frozen corn. Was delicious! Will definitely be making again, hopefully next time our picky 5 year old will be more keen on it. Our 15 month old devoured a whole one though! Just a question, we didn’t use all the sauce and have a small jar left over, how long will it keep in the fridge?
Made these just as you described and they were so good! Served them with some Mexican rice, guac, sour cream and diced tomato. Perfection. Thanks for a great recipe
I made my usual recipe but with the added addition of the refried beans as suggested.. Game changer, Really takes it up a level as the kids dont like refried beans but didn’t know they were ther.. Fabulous!
Omg so many yummy recipes but I have decided to have a go with this one today. My son loves everything that is produced from your blog!! Thank you yet again!!
Hi Nagi,
So many recipes call for onion and garlic powder, but my husband gets migraines from these. Can I sub real garlic and onion or leave out and add in the sauce mix?
Thanks, love your recipes!
Easy and great as leftovers using a toaster oven to reheat!! Thank you for the goodness 🤤
Just a tip bake enchiladas with no sauce or cheese on top uncovered for the 1st 10 minutes. Pull out and then add your toppings this way the tortillas do not come out soggy.
If you use the correct tortilla they will never be soggy. Corn tortillas are what make authentic enchiladas. I have no idea where this trend of using flour tortillas for enchiladas has come from, but after living and eaten in Texas for a very long time, I can honestly say I’ve never had flour tortillas for enchiladas.
Hi Thomas, you could use either and they would both work here – flour tortillas are more common here hence why I’ve used them. N x
Best enchilada recipe ever!! My family loved this. The sauce was simple to make and very tasty and adding the retried beans made the meat mixture exceptional!! Thank you for sharing! Brenda H.